I wanted to make a new thread for people to whine, bitch, complain, fix and even defend the BCS. This stuff really shouldn't go into the pick-em thread or the thread about Northwestern or Iowa.

The BCS disgusts me. I think Alabama-Texas is a worthy matchup, but it is by far not the ONLY worthy matchup. Add in that the coaches poll was completely off the rails (some coaches ranked Penn State above not only Iowa, but TCU, Boise and Cincy)

I have no real problem with a ranking system that factors in computers and pollsters. It's what happens to those rankings that are idiotic. Here are my solutions:

* The NCAA needs to take a stronger hand in scheduling. It should encourage and foster partnerships between conferences, much like we have in college basketball. Have an ACC-Big 10 challenge in football as well as basketball.

* Eight-team playoff. It is simplicity itself. 1-8; 2-7; 3-6; 4-5 all in the second Friday and Saturday in December. (the 1-8 game Friday night; three games Saturday) These games are played on the higher seeds home fields.

This year:

Ohio State vs. Alabama

Oregon vs. Texas

Boise vs. Cincy

Florida vs. TCU

* The next round (assume high seeds win) of 1-4; 2-3 should be played on New Year's Day -- Two of the BCS bowls get it.

* Championship game played the second Saturday in January. Have a consolidation game played before. The other two Bowls get these.

Every other team, INCLUDING teams that lose in the first round of the playoffs, can accept other bowl bids. So, if Ohio State loses to Alabama, it can still accept the Capitol One Bowl.

I like the 8-team format. I used rankings. If you want to do a system where the champions of the BCS conferences are guaranteed bids and you take two others, that's fine. If you want to broaden it to 16, I can live with it.

I'm not necessarily doing the whole "little guy rules!" thing. I do believe that Alabama and Texas have played better schedules than TCU or Boise. That's why I want the NCAA to take a stronger hand in scheduling. At some point, I'd like to see the conferences grow. Boise would kick ass in the Pac-10 and TCU would be a much better representative of the Big 12 than Baylor or Kansas State.

Add on your ideas. Defend the current abomination. Let's have at it!

And let the Hawkbrains have their own thread. The Illini will rise again!

http://www.suntimes.com/sports/1921828,chicago-sun-times-rick-morrissey-120409.article

I don't know if this amounts to much. Morrissey is a homeless man's Rick Reilly, who is basically just a shell of himself now. I think the paper had a chance to go for a young, hungry blogger type and didn't.

BUT... Morrissey is the Tribune's top hitter, so it is a blow, I guess.

To the polls!

Hines Ward basically called out Big Ben for not playing last night. Both the Steelers and Cardinals lost last night and you could make a case they would have won if their regular QBs had been playing. (Though Leinart and Dennis Dixon didn't play horribly)

The NFL -- prodded by Congress -- is moving to really address concussions. I bag on MLB a lot and Selig in particular, but I think baseball has been better about making sure guys sit their asses down if they have a concussion.

A few thoughts about concussions in general:

* Stop with the macho BS from older players. In fact, all of those old farts can have glass of STFU. In all the industries involving physical labor, only in sports do you have idiots from the past doing this.

Sure, you hear coal miners talking about how rough they had it, but you never hear them begrudge today's workers the safety precautions.

* Big Ben should make sure the next few balls he throws to Ward are high, so Ward has to reach and expose his ribs. Ward is a dick.

* It's sad, but only guys like Big Ben and Warner can get away with this. Both Mannings, Brady, Brees, Favre and maybe RIvers could do it. But young QBs? Or young receivers? They sit down with a headache, they don't get to get back up. Coaches are dicks too.

The NFL needs to get this figured out. Now.

My son is now 8 weeks old. My wife doesn't want him playing football. I wonder how many mothers out there are thinking the same thing.

This is the last update that it's own post, I promise. You guys have all been very patient with me. I'll work updates into the regular threads from now on. And thanks for all the kind thoughts and advice.

I am back at work today. I made it a whole 90 minutes before calling home to see how Mrs. Worf the Evil Cardinals Fan and little Harry Santo Brickhouse Stoney Dawson Walton Grace Drew Sue BLou Worfington was doing. They are fine. My wife is a stone cold professional at this -- she worked in the infant room at a daycare center in her early 20s.

They told me my life would change, and it has. I sleep less and am happier. I have no aversion whatsoever to any bodily fluids from any orifice. I was in Wal-Mart by myself, picking up needed supplies the other day, and wandered to the baby aisle on my own and nearly got him a Spider-Man hooded towel. (He only has about 16 hooded towels)

I was thrilled with myself the other day because I managed to get his onesie over his head and a new one back on without making him cry and having him soil the entire nursery. I can't remember being so stupidly proud of myself.

But I wasn't prepared for just everything to affect me. I am no longer the Worf in Deep Space Nine who fights Jem'Hadar.

I am the Worf who was involved with Troi and who wore cowboy hats and sat in hot tubs. The Worf who was --- well, sickeningly cute. (I hated this version until now)

You know that commercial with the girl who lost her puppy and a network of people use Twitter and Facebook and all that to find it and get it back to her by the time she gets home from putting up posters? Yeah, I cry at that now.

I cry because I think of the child hurting, and then being happy. I cry because of the lost dog (I'm a dog lover too). Damn, I'm a mess. I'm crying thinking about it.

By July of next year, I'll be in knock-down drag-outs with some of you over the state of the Cubs. I'll make fun of statheads and traditionalists who don't believe in the DH. I'll have players I love and players I can't stand and I'll argue with those who have chosen the opposite.

But remember, I'm still Cowboy Hat Worf. I won't go back. I can't.

Little Geovanny Simon Hee Seop Felix Kerry Gary Gaetti Worfington won't let me.

I'm able to catch some of the games so far. We've been taking little Theodore Ryan Carlos Sean Richard Randy Aaron Jessica Santo Stone Sorifuldo Worfington to the grandparents' and while they hold him, I get to watch a little game.

A few thoughts:

* The Angels really have the look this year. It is nothing short of amazing how they dispatched of the Red Sox.

* The Yankees are not only the team with the most resources, but the team with the most luck. Unbelievable. I'm fully expecting a seven-game LCS (whenever it gets here)

* I'm generally a believer that the umpires get too much blame, but it's long past time for replay. Fair/foul calls, home run calls, trap plays, hit batsmen and plays at the plate. If a foul ball is found to be fair, it's a ground-rule double.

And if that means we evolve to all plays at all bases, oh well. I'm sick of the "Not balls and strikes" strawman. No one has ever suggested that, but if we do more than the umps want, that's OK too.

If the umps don't like it, they can freaking strike.

* Mrs. Worf the Evil Cardinals fan is holding up fine. She just shrugged her shoulders. She also realizes that Matt Holliday is one of the reasons -- maybe the main one -- that the Cards were even playing instead of the Cubs. My father-in-law, also a Cardinals fan, was bummed the Cards didn't win at least one game, so he could hold that over my head. I told him he'd never see his grandson again if he did.

* Sticking with the my Phillies-Angels prediction

* Baby Theodore Ryan Carlos Sean Richard Randy Aaron Jessica Santo Stone Sorifuldo is doing fine. In less than two hours, he will be one week old. This has been the fastest week of my life. He's nursing like a trooper.

* I go back to work on Wednesday, so I'll have more time during the day to post. That is, if I can pull myself away. I'm going to buy a few lottery tickets and see if I can become independently wealthy and do nothing but stare at my son.

* Poop update -- we are now in the yellow/orange phase!

Aramis DeAndre Sorifuldo Santo Stone Yellon Sue Milheil Derrek Carlos Worfington is doing fine. He gave us a really good night last night as far as sleeping. Mrs. Worf the Evil Cardinals Fan is doing great with the breastfeeding (and it's like Girls Gone Wild in my home. Definitely an "open-air" approach)

A.D.S.S.S.Y.S.M.D.C (that's what we call him) definitely smiled when I told him about Holliday dropping the ball.

He also has a baby superpower. He can shoot poop across the room. He got my wife, the floor, the changing table, the changing pad and maybe even a dog. (They really don't understand why we aren't rubbing HIS nose in it)

That may not seem like much, but it's certainly more than Aaron Miles brought to the table this year.

I'll check in again when I can. If you don't like these updates, I really don't care. I'm a new father. Get over it.